Plant Based

Our involvement in the plant-based category is a natural evolution of our leading position on animal welfare and experience in sourcing and processing vegetables.

Market Overview

The rise in plant based eating or flexitarian approaches to meal times has increased rapidly since 2017. Veganuary, the charity encouraging people to try a vegan diet in January has seen an incredible uplift in participants. 59,500 individuals signed up in 2017 compared to 168,500 in 2018.

More and more people are choosing a plant based diet for ethical, environmental and health reasons.

We believe in the longevity of the category and are passionate about our role in improving taste, quality, variety and sourcing.

Working with existing brands

We help existing brands bring their plant-based products to the UK market. With expertise in marketing insight, technical science and our strong relationships with retailers we have brought world leading innovation into the plant- based arena.

Recent launches include the Vivera Veggie Steak into Tesco supermarkets. A first-to-market product that gained national press coverage and cemented Vivera as a key brand for the UK plant based community.

Our Plant based brands

We’re also set to launch products in our own plant-based brands that either challenge the traditional concept of a vegan lifestyle (Squeaky Bean) or provide an alternative to meat replacement (Jinja). With initial interest from retailers we expect to see these in store early 2019.

Plant based brands

Vivera

Our partnership with Vivera – an established vegan and vegetarian brand based in the Netherlands – has seen its products rapidly becoming some of the most popular plant-based items in the UK.

Vivera focuses on meat replacement with best-in-category taste and texture while also delivering:

Protein – Vivera mince is higher in protein than beef mince
Sustainability – made using sustainable soya
Innovation – in January 2018, Vivera’s Veggie Shawarma Kebab was voted one of the UK’s top three meat-replacement products in a taste test undertaken by The Telegraph.

Jinja

Modern plant-based brand focussing on health, taste and convenience. Jinja will represent an alternative to more processed competitors, with clean ingredient decks and dense nutrition.
• Taste great – products you will love to eat regardless of your diet
• Looks like it tastes – every product is colourful and appetising

Squeaky Bean

A new vegan brand contrasting with the traditional ‘squeaky clean’ image of veganism and plant based food
• For people who are bored with mainstream plant based brands
• Vegans want to indulge too – increasing number of ‘dirty vegan’ pop-ups
• Quick, no nonsense, tasty food
• NPD looking towards nostalgic favourites from childhood